Influence of Season on Crops, Fall- ploughing, csfr. 99 



following. They were both planted with Indian corn, 

 about the same time. I rode past those fields tour or live 

 times a week all summer, as they were between my two 

 places ; and I do not recollect seeing any of the com 

 in Doctor Grayson's fiejf! replanted; I n quired of his 

 overseer, who informed me that then- wrre very few of 

 the corn hills cut off by the cut- worm ; whilst in Mr. Beit's 

 field, I observed them frequently replanting the corn; 

 I made it my business to inquire of Mr. Belt, owner 

 of the spring-ploughed field, and he informed me that his 

 field was replanted tour times ; which 1 have no doubt of, 

 from what I saw in the course of the last summer. I 

 frequently questioned the negroes who worked in the field, 

 as to the cause of their replanting the corn ; and they uni- 

 formly informed me, that it was cut off by the cut worm. 

 And they further said, that they did not think that 

 there were one thousand hills in the field, that were not 

 cut off twice or three times. Mr. Belt himself informed 

 mc, that he did not get one barrel (which is five bushels) 

 of sound corn off the whole field, which was about 

 eighteen or twenty acres. It was cut oif in the silk, for 

 fodder. Dr. Grayson's field was about fifteen acres ; and 

 as good corn as any in the neighbourhood. 



I had almost forgot the specimens of pyritous earth you 

 sent with the other things. 1 have seen but one place in 

 this neighbourhood with such earth, which is mixed with 

 iron ; some of it that I heated red hot, had a smell some- 

 what like burnt feathers, from which circumstance, 1 

 pos< there must originally have been some animal matter 

 mixed with it. 1 have observed in places where 



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